Black Stockings
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This bawdy belle in black stockings is part of a series by the German
company of Schafer and Vater. She, and two of her sisters, are currently
being reproduced in Belgium by Mundial
Company, but the reproductions are showing up all over the world, and
the Internet. The repros lack the sharp, clean bisque and crisp modeling
of the originals. Many of the fine details are lost in the reproductions,
from the combmarked curls to the ribbing in the stockings, and the molding
on the reproductions looks blurred and dull. The reproduction ladies have
blunt noses and do not have the delicate facial painting, including the
finely-shaped parted lips, found in the Schafer originals. The painting
on the originals is in soft, clear colors, but the decoration on the repros
is muddied. Often the repros are smeared with dirt to give the appearance
of age and hide the poor quality of the bisque and painting. This 5.5 inch
long lady is unmarked, but this same model is often found with a freehand
number and may have also have an incised "2800" series number
or the incised mark of Schafer, an "R" within a starburst, topped
by a crown. The repros are all unmarked.
This 5
inch long black-stockinged bisque belle by Schafer and Vater is 5"
long. She is of excellent sharp bisque and is beautifully decorated. She
is incised "2863/1" and with a freehand "III" in black,
but she has also been seen without any marks or with the incised Schafer
mark of an "R" in a starburst, surmounted by a crown.
A closeup
of her delicately painted face with parted smiling lips, surrounded by sharply
modeled curls.
4"
tall, this lovely lady is incised "2865," but may also be found
with a freehand number, the incised Schafer mark, or unmarked.
This 5
inch long black-stockinged bisque belle by Schafer and Vater is 5"
long. She is of excellent sharp bisque and is beautifully decorated. She
is incised "2863/1" and with a freehand "III" in black,
but she has also been seen without any marks or with the incised Schafer
mark of an "R" in a starburst, surmounted by a crown. 
A closeup
of her delicately painted face with parted smiling lips, surrounded by sharply
modeled curls.
4"
tall, this lovely lady is incised "2865," but may also be found
with a freehand number, the incised Schafer mark, or unmarked.